Country Lifestyles
April 2017 Profile – Ben Baldus : Setting Specific Goals
By Jessica Crabtree
In the southwest region of Michigan is the town of Paw Paw. “Town so nice, they named it twice,” former resident Ben Baldus said laughing. Named after the Indian tribe, Paw Paw Indians, Michigan is not readily known for its Native American Culture. It was there that Baldus and his brother and sister were born and raised, “My family was in farming. My grandpa on both sides farmed, had cows, hogs and horses.” As a youth, Baldus was brought up in a rural setting and introduced to 4-H. “I got involved in 4-H and loved it! It was a family-oriented lifestyle. I even was 4-H president once,” Baldus recalled.
Early on Baldus became interested in horses and less engaged in farming, “The older I got, I liked driving tractors less and less.” Baldus had the foresight that if he one day would be a cowboy and ride horses, he needed to learn from renowned horse trainers such as John Lyons and Monty Roberts, “My parents were helpful getting me into horses. I got VHS tapes of both trainers and clinicians, John Lyons and Monty Roberts. I watched them over and over, learning all I could from them,” Baldus explained. At the young age of 12, Baldus’ parents allowed the young boy to start riding horses for the public. “My dad helped me set up a round pen with lights, and I rode after school.”
That following year, a pivotal occurrence happened. Monty Roberts traveled to the Michigan State Fair. “He was the clinician at the fair. My parents took me to see him. It was a neat experience to watch him, then meet him,” Baldus said. At the time Baldus remembers either wanting to train horses or be a cowboy and ride bulls.
His decision was training horses, a better incentive of stable money. Seeing their son studied horsemanship and training methods, Baldus’ parents leased their son his first show horse when he was 14. “I started showing the horse in 4-H horse programs,” he said. By 16 Baldus was working for a trainer in Michigan, cleaning stalls in exchange for lessons.
To read more pick up a copy of the April 2017 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
Ben alongside his wife, Cameron. (Courtesy photo)
By Martha Crump
In the April issue of North Texas Farm & Ranch, I introduced the discussion of what is considered the Biden 30X30 Land Grab via the quiet attempt to push through the formation of Natural Asset Companies. If you are a landowner and have not heard about this, I encourage you to research it for your own protection.
Natural Asset Companies would have been publicly tradable securities that hold rights to, and manage the productivity and ecological benefits of natural assets such as natural forests, marine areas and farmland. They place a value on natural processes. Thanks to the watchful eye of a few, NACs have been stopped for now, but make no mistake, this battle is far from over. According to the American Stewards of Liberty, the Intrinsic Exchange Group is the company responsible for the failed attempt to monetize natural processes via the development of “Natural Asset Companies.”
The New York Times is already helping IEG to set the stage for a rebranding of the idea with the article they ran entitled “Nature Has Value. Could We Literally Invest In It?” which ran on Feb. 18 of this year. The NYT readily assured their readers that, “Natural asset companies would put a market price on improving ecosystems, rather than on destroying them.” That is a perfect lead-in for IEG as they had already indicated that they would be rebranding the idea in yet another attempt to create the investment vehicle.
To read more, pick up a copy of the May issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Lacey Vilhauer
Ingredients:
1-2 cups vegetable oil
½ cup diced white onion
2 tsp minced garlic
½ TBSP chili powder
¼ tsp oregano
½ tsp ground cumin
1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
½ to a full can of Rotel tomatoes and green chilis
8 (burrito-sized) flour tortillas, warmed
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Toppings: salsa, sour cream, guacamole, queso
Directions:
Brown hamburger meat and onions in a large skillet until onions are slightly softened. Add in garlic chili powder, oregano and cumin. Stir and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in Rotel. Cook and stir another five minutes. Set aside.
Warm tortillas in the microwave. On each tortilla, place about ½ cup of meat mixture. Do not overfill. Top with shredded cheese. Fold sides over the meat and cheese, then fold bottom over the sides and roll up. Place all folded chimichangas, seam side down, on a large plate and repeat with remaining tortillas.
To read more, pick up a copy of the May issue of NTFR. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Dal Houston
I am terribly saddened by all the argumentative discourse that seems to be going on in today’s world. It seems as though it is no longer enough just to disagree on certain issues. We are expected to classify someone as an enemy if they do not always agree with us on all issues, lest we be considered weak.
To make things even worse, because those who disagree with you are now considered enemies, the sentiment seems to be that it is only fair and proper to destroy them, because they are the enemy, again with the fear of ridicule for being weak if we do not fight.
With all that said, and seemingly unrelated, I am a big John Wayne fan. From watching him dive into his role as a cowboy, to marveling at his time portraying a soldier or appreciating his acting gig as a sailor, there is seldom a week that goes by without me watching at least one
To read more, pick up a copy of the April issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
-
Country Lifestyles1 year agoScott & Stacey Schumacher: A Growth Mindset
-
Equine8 months agoThe Will to Win
-
Country Lifestyles7 years agoStyle Your Profile – What your style cowboy hat says about you and new trends in 2017
-
Country Lifestyles4 years agoAmber Crawford, Breakaway Roper
-
HOME7 years agoGrazing North Texas – Wilman Lovegrass
-
Country Lifestyles7 years agoDecember 2016 Profile, Rusty Riddle – The Riddle Way
-
Outdoor9 years agoButtercup or Primrose?
-
Country Lifestyles8 years agoJune 2016 Profile – The man behind the mic: Bob Tallman